Sponsored Projects

Film Independent Fiscal Sponsorship

New and innovative work, fiscally sponsored by Film Independent.

The Fiscal Sponsorship program opens the door to nonprofit funding for independent filmmakers and media artists, supporting a diverse slate of projects at every stage of the filmmaking process – from development to distribution and beyond.

Support Film Independent's creative community and help bring these projects to life by donating below.

The 3,000 Project

Wisconsin, one of the most incarcerated states in America, abolished parole in 1998 changing the fate of 3,000 parole eligible inmates in its prison system overnight, sparking an inferno of activism and debate surrounding this population from the high offices of government to the streets of Milwaukee as the state grapples with solutions to curb its alarming rate of mass incarceration.

After Antarctica is a feature-length documentary that follows polar explorer Will Steger’s life journey as an eyewitness to the greatest changes in the polar regions of our planet. Now, thirty years after his historic coast-to-coast expedition across the coldest continent on Earth, Steger is not only known for being the first in history to complete this historic feat – he is also the last.

AHMAD ZAHIR explores the extraordinary life of Afghanistan’s most revered musician, the “Elvis of Afghanistan,” who rockets to stardom in the 60s and 70s – a time when women in Kabul wear mini-skirts, foreigners flock to Afghanistan on the “hippie trail,” and progressive change swept the country.

Tough, but diva fabulous, Leo, aspiring drag superstar, is stuck working in a fish cannery in Alaska. He and his twin sister are trapped in the monotony of fist fights and fish guts. Out of necessity, Leo learned to fight back, which catches the attention of the local boxing coach. When a new boy moves to town and wants to be his sparring partner, Leo has to face the real reason he's stuck in Alaska.

Maxene Andrews, of the famed musical trio “The Andrews Sisters”, lived parallel lives. In the eyes of the American public, she was a beloved icon of 1940s patriotism. In private, she had many secrets that would have shocked America and destroyed the sisters’ careers and legacy.

In the early weeks postpartum, Rose finds herself unraveling as she struggles to breastfeed her newborn son, Miles. As her baby continues to lose weight, she is faced with an unconventional choice when her best friend Maddie offers to nurse her baby.

Exposing a painful, quintessentially American geography, Conscience Point unearths a deep clash of values between the Native American Shinnecock and their elite Hamptons neighbors, who have made sacred land their playground.

After her father’s Alzheimer’s diagnosis, a straitlaced college transfer comes of age in the wild chaos of a legendary student commune. Her identity wavers when she volunteers as “virgin sacrifice” for her co-op’s black mass party and her “Friend of Christian Camp Past” witnesses.

Two transgender men meet at the funeral of the esteemed captain of the Lavender League, a community bowling club for older lesbians. Grief and desire seep together as the death of a queer matriarch transforms a community left behind.

The story takes us into the colorful pop-culture world of these four 13-year old friends, back in the days when video games were still a novelty. Mimaw and her friends Paolo, Kachi and Gilligan go on a journey of self-discovery together as they play games and wrestle with new dilemmas – puppy love, circumcision and other horror stories.

Never before seen archival video reveals the untold story of an underground LGBTQ nightclub that became a political and creative center for a community besieged by AIDS and discrimination. As club owners Paul V. and Mr. Dan prepare for the Dragstrip 66 finale, patrons, staff, and celebrities reflect on their memories and impressions as the beloved nightclub comes to the end of its historic run.

Emerging Artists LA offers access to the film festival experience FREE to filmmakers and film aficionados alike. Submitting a film is free and attending the festival is free and that’s the way we’d like to keep it!

A film about fashion’s impact on the environment and the designer who’s doing something about it, “Fashion Reimagined” follows Amy Powney of London brand Mother of Pearl who decides at the height of her career that she can no longer participate in her industry’s destructive cycle. Instead, she sets off to produce a sustainable collection from field to finished garment, a pioneering journey across three continents that tests her strength and belief in humanity.

A filmmaker tries to fix her problems with her evangelical father in a screenplay with a happy ending. When her plan backfires, she quits writing lines, starts to listen, and becomes a character in her own film.

When you sacrifice everything to be a “voice for the voiceless” and you’ve been a political activist for your entire life, then at age 79 you get to be the snarky grandmother who takes down the guy that no one else could touch.

In a small town in Ecuador, teenager Diana runs away from an institution for troubled girls with her toddler. The goal: to pick up her younger sister from their abusive childhood home and start a new life.

A humble virtuoso walks unwittingly towards death while traveling the world playing his last concerts, reflecting on his life musically, professionally, personally, and spiritually. Trumpet legend Roy Hargrove is celebrated through priceless footage of his final days and treasured memories from music industry legends.

Celebrated UN humanitarian battling a debilitating disease will attempt a twelve-day Grand Canyon mission on horseback and whitewater raft that will include extreme tests of strength, endurance and danger to shatter stigma and discrimination against people with disabilities. Time is of the essence as her body’s muscles waste away, weakening her every move.

A sports drama based on a true story, a coach and a group of eight boys from the Oregon School for the Deaf overcome tremendous odds and defy expectations to win the 1986 Oregon State Track and Field Championship.

This #metoo / #timesup feature about an aspiring rock star fights a mental breakdown along the road to stardom while pursued by a dysfunctional romantic. Drawn together and torn apart through humor, heartache and hope, the two grapple with the healing power of friendship and the damage wrought by demons of childhood.

Six women emerge from the shadows of the California cannabis industry to go legal. As farmers, entrepreneurs and activists, these modern-day superheroes battle government bureaucracy, corporate interests and risk financial ruin in order to fight for the industry they helped create and for the survival of their community.

In a ballroom called Paradise, in the aftermath of World War II, a beguiling Hawaiian singer dances with a returned American soldier and debates the dignity of the American dream. But when his dance tickets run out, she is left with a harsh choice – for when the dancing stops, this man will die.

Leveling Lincoln brings back to the forefront the first case in the Northern USA, where a school was torn down in the quest for equal rights in education. Mrs. Taylor vs. The Board of Education of New Rochelle, NY – 1961, was a landmark case brought by Lincoln School parents. Many still remember and speak on camera of this pivotal case, their childhood after the case, and how it relates to today’s educational struggles.

Little City Gardens is a nonfiction feature that presents the magnetism and beauty of a farm that existed in San Francisco. It’s a story about connections to land, place, and each other told through the poetic visuals of a working urban farm. It’s a moving portrait about the powerful and compassionate relationship between people and land found in the most unlikely of places.

Living Art follows the life of Mara Clawson, a brilliant visual artist battling a life-threatening genetic disease. As she prepares for the largest gallery show of her young career, Mara inspires everyone around her to help create a world full of love and kindness.

Love’s Labours Lost is Shakespeare’s only comedy where the women reject their suitors – a group of downright dangerous men in power. Our pointed satire, filled with dark humor and wit, will center the marginalized voices of Shakespeare’s female characters and highlight how little patriarchal oppression has changed in over 500 years.

Mo Show paints an unexpected picture of Chattanooga, Tennessee, through the eyes of a young black filmmaker who guides us through the personal stories of the folks in his world. From his Confederate-flag-flying neighbor to the Iraqi refugee across town, Mo wants to connect every part of his still-segregated southern city.

After a miscommunication leads her coworkers to believe that she is pregnant, a seemingly barren waitress allows the fantasy to overtake the reality and finds herself navigating an ever-growing web of lies as she gets closer and closer to her imaginary “full term.”

In an era of giant Maxi Pads and Phil Donahue, misfit teen Moxie finds her fit with a group of college political activists. But when she becomes pregnant by the rebel leader, she faces her own fight — arguing for her abortion at a time when women’s liberation is coming into its own.

Necessity traces the fight in Minnesota against the expansion of pipelines carrying toxic tar sands oil through North America. Home to much of the world’s precious freshwater resources, the state is also the site of expanding oil industry infrastructure. The film follows indigenous activists and non-indigenous allies in their resistance to the pipelines traversing native lands and essential waterways.

In rural Pennsylvania, a teenage couple’s — James and Lizzy — relationship is interrupted by Aaron, the guy James almost hooked up with four months ago. Red explores being queer in conservative towns during hard times with empathy rather than disdain.

Three Arab women living in modern day Jordan must put their differences aside and work together in order to survive. Tangled in a family drama after Bakri dies, his two wives and his adopted daughter navigate his inheritance, finding out that the only way forward is to try and make peace with each other.

Co-stars Ela’ (Clarke Peters) and Legbani (Yolonda Ross) burn up the stage in a new racially fueled Broadway play. But when trust is violated, fact and fiction become blurred as the couple wrestles with what it means to love and succeed as black artists in show business.

Season of the Witches is a psycho-social crime thriller following three American PhD students volunteering in post-hurricane Puerto Rico who accidentally kill a local playboy in a revenge scheme gone wrong. When the “doing good on the Island” women try to cover up the murder, they are pursued by a local detective with demons of her own, raising the stakes on what it means to be loyal and good.

When the California WaterFix, an estimated $18 billion proposal to divert fresh water to Southern California, was introduced it seemed inevitable despite the high price tag and public opposition. Shouting Into the Wind introduces the union reps and political figures behind the proposal and the vocal residents who pushed back.

When an opportunistic Indian graduate student finds a bag full of drugs, he decides to sell them on the deep web to make a quick buck. Little does he know that a brilliant Indian American DEA agent is working around the clock to hunt him down.

A pregnant Palestinian woman, whose husband died in the Israeli prison, wants to avenge his death. Under Hamas’ guidance, she plans a terror attack in Israel. The premature birth of her son makes her reconsider, but will Hamas let her off the hook?

Without power for six months following Hurricane Maria, and dependent upon importing materials from overseas for their public elementary school students, a small mountain community in Puerto Rico begins to transition towards autonomy by transforming an abandoned building next to the school into a solar-powered factory where they will build the items they once imported.

An homage to gritty 70s horror, Stain-Free is the story of Billie, a crippled police officer-turned-illicit crime scene cleaner who struggles to hold onto her humanity while covering up the murders perpetrated by her mysterious Employer.

Locations like the Ace Hotel in Palm Springs show how Stan’s work is a staple of the Mid Century Movement from a California artist working since the 1950’s to today. The film is a study of contrasts, Stan, a reserved man, whose work, much like Jackson Pollack’s, is the culmination of physical battle with his preferred medium, clay.

Elderly prisoners cost taxpayers billions and are the least likely to reoffend, which is why senior citizen activist Bill Ryan - who already helped to end the death penalty in Illinois - wants to set them free.

It’s no secret that the heroin and opioid epidemic is ravaging communities and our country. It’s time to shed light on some unique and successful ways to treat opioid addiction as we are now in desperate need of finding short and long term solutions to help save lives.

Through intimate first-hand accounts, refugees describe their near-impossible journeys of hope from their African homes to European cities. Alongside, social and other aid workers provide a framework for challenges new immigrants often face as they attempt integration.

A documentary short exposing an unsettling truth: The United States no longer welcomes the “tired, poor, huddled masses” we’re telling to “get in line” for the American dream. There is no line anymore, not for them.

An experimental long-form visual poem about a solo female traveler reflecting on the principles of human existence through a woman’s lens. Her fragmented memories are juxtaposed with natural imagery captured from Iceland and Africa. The two polar opposite locations visually represent the cognitive dissonance in us all.

They say Tragedy + Time = Comedy. In the aftermath of 9/11, humor remained America’s most vital tool against fear, anger, and pain. Too Soon is the twenty-year chronology of how comedy stopped completely, slowly regained its footing, and finally grew bigger and more powerful than ever, allowing all of us to unite and heal in the process.

The 2016 election reaffirmed the power of American Evangelicalism. Many, including pastor J, are still dumbfounded. How could a divorcee who bragged about grabbing women garner support from a community predicated on piousness? The answer goes beyond Trump. Decades ago, conservative leaders conspired to seize political power. T​rue Believer​ is a feature documentary that reveals the remarkable tale of how a religion was hijacked for political gain, and​ especially as we look toward 2020,​ unpacks the present-day crisis many evangelicals are facing now that their faith is largely responsible for electing Donald Trump.

A fish-out-of-water in “Small Town,” Pennsylvania finds herself in over her head when she has an affair with a local married man and becomes an accessory to a murder. In the end she risks it all to save the lives of two innocent children. Nothing ever happens in a small town… until it does.

In 1963, a white civil rights activist is murdered while on a Freedom Walk to deliver a letter to the governor of Mississippi. Within a week, a diverse group of Freedom Walkers attempts to complete the walk and are arrested. Forty-five years later, a woman commits to walk the same path and ensure the letter is finally delivered, alongside the surviving Freedom Walkers.

When 32-year-old father Ady Barkan is diagnosed with ALS, a terminal illness that will soon paralyze his entire body, he decides to use the time he has left to confront the politicians who threaten his health care and America’s democracy. As he loses his ability to speak, he sets out across the country with his wife, 2-year old son, and a motley crew of activists to launch the most unlikely political movement in a generation.

When a depressed young writer in the late 19th century is restricted by her well-intentioned physician husband to a summer of bed rest in a remote country estate, her isolation — and marriage — sets in motion her descent into madness.

After learning about the death of his mentor on Facebook, Yoshi walks 8,800 miles to connect with her family and friends. But along his journey Yoshi discovers the courage to look inward and rectify his own past.